Shots fired in a reported suicide attempt at a Vista apartment prompted a lockdown at a nearby school and library for at least two hours Tuesday until SWAT deputies found a wounded man inside the home.

The 26-year-old man was in the Avalon Drive apartment off Eucalyptus Avenue with his girlfriend, their 2-week-old baby and a friend when he shot himself in the head, authorities said.

The girlfriend fled with the baby and the friend, and they called 911 about 1 p.m.

Deputies approached the apartment holding a ballistic shield and heard two shots, said sheriff’s spokeswoman Jan Caldwell. They retreated, then heard a final shot, she said.

Vista Magnet Middle School was placed on lockdown, and staff and visitors were evacuated from the city library. The other three units in the apartment building were evacuated.

The sheriff’s tactical team was called in, Caldwell said.

SWAT members went into the apartment about 4:10 p.m. and found the man sitting in a chair in a bedroom, suffering from a gunshot wound. A gun was next to him.

Paramedics took him to a hospital, but no update on his condition was available.

Teri Figueroa • U-T

Building flooded after teen DUI suspect crashes into fire hydrant

el cajon

A nutritional supplement company in El Cajon was heavily damaged late Monday after a teenager suspected of drunken driving crashed into a fire hydrant, flooding the business.

The crash on Broadway near Bostonia Street in front of Amarc Enterprises was reported at 11:30 p.m., police Lt. Tim Henton said.

Minutes earlier, a caller spotted the driver of a Toyota Tacoma who appeared to be impaired and called police, Henton said. The Tacoma’s 17-year-old driver ran into the hydrant and sheared it off before officers got there. The teen kept driving east on Broadway at 10 mph to 15 mph. A patrol car pulled alongside the pickup and pushed it to the side of the road as it approached North Third Street, and the teen was taken into custody, Henton said.

The teenager was booked on suspicion of driving under the influence, hit-and-run and evading an officer. He was then released to his parents, Henton said.

Water cascaded onto the roof of Amarc for half an hour, creating a hole and a major leak. When firefighters opened the door, the water was about 10 inches deep.

“With the doors closed, it filled up like a bathtub,” said business owner Al Sanchez, of Anaheim.

He said he was gearing up to for a convention this month, and all the fliers and brochures for the event were destroyed.

Debbi Baker • U-T

Bomb squad blows up grenade containing no explosives at school

San Diego

A bomb squad blew up a metal grenade found near a classroom at Crawford High School in east San Diego Tuesday.

The grenade had no explosives in it, and nothing else was damaged by the small blast, fire department spokesman Maurice Luque said.

Campus police notified the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department about 2:20 p.m. that a grenade was found about 15 feet from a classroom at the school off 54th Street south of El Cajon Boulevard in the El Cerrito neighborhood.

The grenade was beneath a 20-foot long storage container, in a channel designed for the prongs of a forklift, Luque said.

The school was not evacuated because students were leaving for the day at that time.

Luque said the Metro Arson Strike Team’s robot couldn’t reach the grenade, so a bomb technician in body armor X-rayed the device, then set up a tripod to fire a small explosive charge at it about 4 p.m. The grenade blew apart, revealing that it had no powder inside.

Investigators continue working to find out who put the grenade there and whether that person should face criminal charges, Luque said.

Pauline Repard • U-T

Water bursts through asphalt, creates pit in road after line breaks

el cajon

A water main break burst through an El Cajon area road Tuesday morning, forming a 16-by-36-foot pit, authorities said.

A 16-inch line broke about 5:30 a.m. on Ridge Hill Road near Lake Jennings Park Road, causing water to burst through the asphalt, said Melissa McChesney, spokeswoman for Padre Dam Municipal Water District.

Customers were asked to conserve water while repairs were made into the evening, McChesney said. The line is used to fill a reservoir.

Kristina Davis • U-T

Pipe break in La Mesa damages street, leaves some with no water

la mesa

A water main break in La Mesa early Tuesday damaged a street and left several customers without water.

The crack in the 6-inch cast iron pipe was reported around 4 a.m. on Butte Street near Tulare Avenue, a Helix Water District spokeswoman said. Water was cut off to about 44 customers.